Subverted Expectations
by didiwrites
Summary: Pip and Herbert go on a trip to Egypt! Along the way, they begin to discover and explore things about themselves they never thought possible. Bromance ensues. Modern Day AU.


Pip placed his last plaid shirt into his suitcase, finally done packing everything he needed for his trip. He scanned the room dutifully, mentally ticking off what he had packed. "Check and check," he quietly proclaimed to himself as he left his dorm room and walked down to the lobby.

A voice attacked him by surprise. "Jolly day Handel!" came the cheerful exclamation of Herbert, a bright young man who Pip was glad to call his best friend.

"Jolly day to you too, Herbert," replied Pip. The two chuckled at their speech. They had a habit of speaking old English to each other ever since they finished their classic literature class together. It was sort of like an inside joke to them, one they both greatly enjoyed sharing.

"Oh, can you believe it Handel?" Herbert giddily cheered, "_Us_ going to _Egypt!__" _Herbert began to spin in circles of excitement, attracting attention Pip did not want to recieve.

Pip chuckled, "Yes, and although the thought is quite inconcievable," he stepped over to Herbert and patted the latter's back with vigor in an attempt to calm the energetic adult down, "We can do anything together. Can't we, Herbert?"

Herbert smiled. It was that smile that caused every worry and bad thought to melt away and be replaced with a sense of hope and comfort.

"Why, yes we can."

The two laughed boisterously, their arms linked over the other's shoulder. When the two were together, happiness seemed to wring around them.

Herbert checked his phone, "Fiddlesticks! We've kept the Uber waiting!"

The two dashed out the large dorm lobby, bags and suitacases flying behind them. They reached the red car that was waiting for them and plopped inside.

"Took you long enough," the driver muttered.

"What was that?" Pip challenged.

The driver grumbled and looked out the window, whistling to himself.

"Easy there, tiger. We don't want any conflicts before the flight," Herbert cooed.

Pip nodded in agreement and buckled his seat belt. Herbert and Pip idly chatted until they reached the airport. They whisked their bags from the trunk and started walking through the crowded airport doors.

"Say, Herbert, didn't that dreadful driver remind you of Drummle? Perhaps 'Sir Drummle' will end up like that driver in life!" Pip sniggered. Drummle was a "fellow" member of a club Herbert and Pip were both in. His company was quite... unpleasant.

Herbert suppressed his laugh and instead admonished Pip. "You better watch your mouth, Handel." While Herbert did indeed find Pip's statement hilarious, he couldn't let trash talk become a normal habit again.

"And if I don't?"

"One word," Herbert lifted a finger, "Karma."

"Oh _please," _Pip drawled as Herbert manually printed their boarding passes. "Karma can't cage a gentleman like me."

"Ah ah ah, you're doing it again." The two moved into the security check line.

Pip feigned a hurt expression, "I'm doing _what_ exactly?"

Herbert crossed his arms. "You're doing the whole gentleman spiel again. It's not as endearing as you think, Handel. Estella is never going to fall for that act."

Pip froze and began to blush at the mention of Estella. "Oh, Estella..." he dreamily sighed. Hearts began to form in Pip's eyes as be thought of the young woman he was so deeply in love with.

Herbert rolled his eyes. "You know I'll help you in your pursuit of her heart, but you ought to lay off a bit. Your obsession is unhealthy."

"But she is the one," they both recited at the same time. Obviously they've had this conversation many times before. Pip looked extremely disgruntled at the fact.

Herbert gave Pip a snide grin before walking through the metal detector and grabbing his suitcase. Pip soon followed suit and the two began to walk to their gate.

"While we're on the subject of love," Herbert started, "I've been thinking and..." he began to blush deeply. "I think I want to propose to Clara once we've gotten back from Egypt."

Pip's face spread into a wide grin, "That's great Herbert! I'll be so happy when you two get married!" Pip whipped his head up to the ceiling, "Ah, I can't wait to be an uncle!"

Herbert sputtered, face turning shades darker than scarlet. "H-Hold your horses, Handel! We're still very young! There won't be kids for awhile..."

Pip shot him a knowing look before proceeding down the path to their gate. Pip hated to admit it, but he was quite jealous of Herbert's love life. Even though Herbert and Clara's parents arranged for them to meet, they still hit it off, unlike himself and Estella. _No_. Pip thought, _There's still hope for me and Estella! _

Herbert was feeling playful today. "You're thinking about why you and Estella aren't together _again_, aren't you?"

Pip scrunched up his nose in frustration. "It isn't fair!" he whined. Herbert braced himself, preparing for the coming onslaught of complaints.

"We've known each other since I was about seven! Sure, she's a bit older than me, yet she still treats me like a child! And lately she's been hanging out with that creep Drummle! He's awful for her! Why can't she see how deeply in love I am? I'd treat her so well-"

"NO ONE LIKES A WHITE KNIGHT!"

Pip scanned the area, "Who said that?"

Herbert chuckled nervously, "Handel, you ought to calm down, your face is red." Finally reaching their gate, Herbert dragged Pip to a chair and sat him down, pressing a hand to his forehead. "You know I'll always help you out and support you, but you should probably keep the Estella rants behind closed doors."

"Yes, yes, you're right. I'm sorry."

"Group eight, please board the plane," a feminine voice announced on the intercom.

"Oh!" Herbert abruptly sat up, "That's us!" He yanked Pip up from his chair. "Let's go, let's go!"

Pip smiled fondly at Herbert's childish excitement. That was one of Pip's favorite things about Herbert; his never ending optimism and uncanny talent of making every room shine brighter. Pip would give anything just to see Herbert smile. After all, he couldn't begin to count how many times Herbert had helped him out. Whether the problem was emotional or school related, Herbert was always there for him.

The two walked towards the gate desk, dropped off their bags, and handed in their tickets. Their shoes clicked as they walked down the hollow square tunnel that lead to their plane.

Herbert, all smiles and thank yous, lead the way through the cramped aircraft to their seats. Pip hesitantly glanced around, feeling claustrophobic. He had never ridden a plane before, not with how poor his family had been growing up. As Pip trudged forward the fresh carpet scent became intoxicating. The small lights above every seat suddenly became brighter and blinded him. The quiet buzz of the plane amplified and pounded in his ears. He started breathing heavily.

Herbert turned around. Pip instantly calmed. "Oh, I'm sorry, Handel. I forgot this is your first flight ever. Figures you would be a bit nervous." Herbert cupped Pip's right hand and looked up into his eyes with determination. "Don't worry, I'll be here in case you're scared!"

Spotting a few annoyed glances behind Pip's figure, Herbert hastily turned around and continued to their seats.

Pip started at the back of Herbert's light brown head, appreciation filling him to the brim.

"Aha! Here we are!" Herbert whipped around. "Do you want the window seat or the middle seat?"

Pip glanced between the two seats, analyzing the pros and cons between the two. If he was in the middle seat, he would have to sit by a stranger, however, if he was in the window seat he would see how high up from the ground they were. Feeling queasy, he chose the middle seat.

"Suit yourself!" Herbert chirped as he swung himself down on the window seat.

Once they both settled into their seats, they buckled themselves in. Pip's heart pounded from pre-flight jitters. Herbert gave a concerned side glance at the young adult. An idea popped into his head.

"You know, Handel, when I was younger my father would hold my hand before take off so I wouldn't be scared." Herbert held out his left palm, "Would you like to hold mine?"

Pip's eyes trailed from Herbert's hand to his face, then back to his hand. Hesitation clouded his mind. "I-Isn't that kind of weird?" he stuttered. The noise Herbert made in the back of his throat asked Pip to elaborate. "Well, because, I'm an adult and... that's a tad childish..."

Herbert laughed. "Oh, come on Handel! We hold hands _all _the time," his face contorted into a cheshire grin. "Besides, no one is watching!"

A body slumped into the seat next to Pip.

"Well, besides him, and I doubt he even cares."

The monitors hoisted on the backs of the seats flashed on. A flight safety video began to play. It started fine and dandy for Pip. That is, until they got into the protocal in case of an emergency.

An anxious sweat started to form on Pip's brow.

"Don't worry," said a gruff voice. Pip turned to find it came from the bearded man sitting next to his left. "I've been in four plane crashes in my lifetime and I'm still swinging!" The man flashed him a confident smile and thumbs up before putting his hat on his head taking a nap.

_An American accent. __Remind me to never go to America. _

Despite the old man's attempt at reassurance, Pip still felt nervous. The video ended and the wheels of the plane began to turn and move the aircraft forward. Anxieties berrated Pip mercilessly, causing his vision to become hazy.

A warm hand brought Pip back to Earth. He looked up and saw Herbert's strong, comforting eyes. "It'll be okay, Handel." Herbert held up a fisted hand. "Here, have some gum," his palm opened to reveal two small white tablets. "Chew on it so your ears don't pop."

**"SO MY EARS DON'T POP?!" **

Exasperated faces turned around to shush Pip.

Pip repeated himself, albeit in a whisper.

"Not quite literally 'pop,' silly!" Herbert chuckled. "You chew it as we fly up so you don't feel that unpleasant _popping_ sensation in your ears," he said matter of factly.

The plane whirred and inclined upwards. Pip and Herbert quickly popped their tiny gum pieces into their mouths. The chewing gave Pip comfort, for it was something he could focus on other than possible mishaps of their plane.

"Something else I used to do on planes," Herbert started, "Was throw my hands up when the plane flew up as if I was on rollercoaster. C'mon, try it!"

Herbert lifted his hands up in the air. He softly giggled to himself, feeling nostalgic. Pip slowly followed in suit.

"Herbert, I feel dumb."

"Oh, don't be so daft. It's fun, isn't it?"

"I'd rather be holding your hand."

"If you say so."

They put their hands down. Herbert intertwined his left hand with Pip's right. Pip could feel the plane rise higher and higher. He aggresively chewed his gum, each thought of disaster making the interval between each chew to become more rapid. A slight squeeze to his hand brought the chewing to a slow. Pip looked to his right and saw Herbert pointing out the window.

"Take a look Handel, it's not so bad," Herbert's long, pale finger pointed at the glass.

Pip dared to take a peek. He let out a surprised gasp. All the towering structures of London such as Big Ben and Buckingham Palace were nothing but little dots submerged in a crowded gray landscape.

Herbert could spot little stars twinkling in Pip's eyes. Astonishment, no doubt. He chuckled and joined Pip in looking out the window. Large, whispy clouds obstructed the view of the city below. Herbert imagined himself falling into the cloud's soft embrace, its eternal comfort sinking him in. He let out a yawn.

Pip tore his gaze from the window to peer at Herbert, "Are you tired?"

"It would seem so," he let out another yawn. "I suppose I'll take a nap..." Herbert propped his head onto his right fist and slowly closed his eyes, images of billowy clouds carrying him to sleep.

_I guess I should sleep too. _Pip let out a yawn himself and leaned on the back of his chair, sleep quickly overcoming him.

The two slept tranquilly, fingers still intertwined. Their bodies leaned into one another's, seeking comfort in the form of clouds and safety. Pip's head rested on Herbert's firm chest while Herbert's head lolled ontop of Pip's. Pip subconciously snuggled into the sensation. The two boys it seemed, were having the best rest they had experienced in ages.

Chapter One End.

Written for my English teacher, this is for you Ms.W!

Sidenote: The character sitting next to Pip on the plane is actually Joseph Joestar from the series Jojo's Bizzare Adventure. Why is he going back to Egypt? Maybe he's visiting his friends there.

Extra sidenote: I decided to make it a Modern Day Alternate Universe because I was having writer's block and making it take place in modern times is easier to work with.


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